


Children Know Best

by Ellana17



Series: The Kids are Alright [7]
Category: Sanditon (TV 2019), Sanditon - Jane Austen
Genre: F/M, Family Fluff, Fluff and Humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-23
Updated: 2021-01-23
Packaged: 2021-03-15 06:40:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,162
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28934157
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ellana17/pseuds/Ellana17
Summary: Charlotte and Sidney are both too afraid to act on their feelings. Doesn’t mean the kids have not picked up on said feelings.Or: The Parker children start calling Charlotte “Aunt Charlotte”
Relationships: Charlotte Heywood & Mary Parker, Charlotte Heywood/Sidney Parker
Series: The Kids are Alright [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/778743
Comments: 7
Kudos: 69





	Children Know Best

**Author's Note:**

> Let’s just forget about the ball and the fire, shall we?

More often than not, adults dismissed young children as being naïve little creatures, blissfully ignorant of the ways of the world. The Parker children were living proof that particular idea was the greatest misconception of our time.

Following their rather passionate encounter on the cliff, Miss Heywood and Mr Parker had both simply been too afraid to try and define their relationship. There had been secret looks and hand brushing but nothing definite, nothing that could have passed as an agreement between them and nothing that could have roused suspicion in the minds of their friends and families. As it happened, Miss Heywood and Mr Parker had also made the mistake of dismissing the Parker children’s presence during their public encounters.

Sidney had joined his brother and sister-in-law at Trafalgar House for breakfast that morning, hoping, even without admitting to himself, that Miss Heywood would make an appearance. Rapid footsteps were heard in the stairwell and Sidney lifted his eyes from the newspaper he had been reading just in time to see his niece Alicia entering the room. The young girl seemed even more enthusiastic than usual when she ran to her mother with her hair undone and no shoes on, smiling widely.

“Mamma!” she exclaimed. “Have you seen Aunt Charlotte? She promised to take us on a walk on the beach this morning!”

Sidney’s gaze promptly went back to the newspaper in his hands but he found that the words in front of his eyes made little sense. He ventured a quick glance at Mary and saw the surprise on her face.

“Aunt Charlotte?” Tom asked, frowning. “And who, pray tell, is Aunt Charlotte?”

The girl tilted her head slightly to the side and stared at her father curiously.

“My dear,” Mary said. “I think she’s referring to our dear Charlotte.”

The young girl rolled her eyes. “Yes, that is what I said. Have you seen her?”

Sidney sank deeper into his chair and lifted the newspaper in his hands, effectively covering his slightly reddening face.

“My dear girl,” Mary started, “God knows I love Charlotte as if she were my own daughter but we are not actually related, you know.”

Alicia’s face contorted in a grimace of confusion. “She will be our aunt when she marries Uncle Sidney, will she not?”

Sidney’s eyes went wide behind his newspaper. Mary turned to him but he refused to meet her enquiring eyes. He could not pretend he was not actively trying to hide anymore.

“Sidney?” his sister-in-law asked in a quiet voice. “What is the meaning of this?”

Sidney took a deep breath and finally lowered the newspaper. He took his time folding it and putting it on the table as he tried to gather enough wit to think of an excuse, any excuse. Before he had a chance to do so however, Miss Heywood entered the room with Jenny and Henry. She was holding Jenny’s hand while Henry clutched at her dress.

“Good morning!” she greeted.

Alicia ran the small distance that separated them and jumped into Charlotte’s arms, almost making the young woman loose her balance.

“Aunt Charlotte!” the girl exclaimed. “You promised we would go to the beach this morning.”

Sidney could not help but stare at the charming blush that appeared on Miss Heywood’s face in that moment. She glanced at him for a second before quickly averting her gaze.

“Indeed, I did,” she said, avoiding Mary’s and Tom’s eyes.

“Can we go now?” Jenny asked, tugging on Charlotte’s hand.

“Children, let Charlotte have a spot of breakfast first,” Mary told them with an amused smile.

Charlotte chuckled. “It is alright, I find I have little appetite this morning. A walk on the beach sounds delightful.”

“Are you feeling alright, dear girl?” Mary asked, her voice laced with concern.

Charlotte nodded quickly. “Of course, perfectly. Come along, children.”

Sidney stood up suddenly and Charlotte glanced at him curiously. “I was thinking about taking a walk myself,” he said. “May I join you?”

“We would be delighted, Mr Parker,” Charlotte told him, smiling almost shyly.

Once all the children were ready, the little group finally left the house. Tom sighed and picked up Sidney’s discarded newspaper while Mary stared at the door pensively.

“I wonder what the children meant by that,” she wondered out loud.

Tom did not looked away from the newspaper as he answered, “They are children, my dear. Pay it no mind.”

Meanwhile, Sidney, Charlotte and the children had slowly made their way to the beach. Jenny and Henry immediately started running along the shore while Alicia stayed back, glancing curiously at her uncle and Charlotte.

“Does Mamma not know of your engagement?” Alicia asked finally.

Charlotte blushed violently while Sidney glanced away, looking at the sea. Neither of them seemed ready to address the issue directly.

Alicia frowned. “Are you not engaged?” she asked, surprised.

Charlotte finally glanced at the girl. “Not yet,” she said. “That is… Not at all. No. We are not… engaged.”

Sidney had to bit his lip to stop himself from laughing. “Alicia,” he finally said. “Go build a sandcastle with your siblings.”

“But-”

“Now.”

Alicia sighed before running to her younger siblings. Sidney chanced a glance at Miss Heywood. She seemed determined to avoid his eyes.

“My nieces and nephew have grown very fond of you,” he stated.

“I am very fond of them as well,” Charlotte answered simply.

Sidney came to a stop. “And they are not the only ones,” he added when Charlotte turned around to face him. “Miss Heywood, since your arrival in Sanditon, I have found myself being utterly fascinated by you.”

“Mr Parker-”

“Miss Heywood, words alone cannot express the way I feel when I am with you. You are the most amazing, infuriating, fascinating woman I have ever known and I want to spend the rest of my life by your side if you will allow me to do so.” Charlotte stared at him wordlessly. Sidney took a deep breath. “Miss Heywood… Charlotte… would you do me the honour of becoming my nieces and nephew’s aunt?”

Charlotte dissolved into giggles, looking away as tears of joy filled her eyes. When she finally glanced back at him, smiling brightly, Sidney could not help but gently rest his hand against her cheek and brush the tears away.

“The honour would be mine, Mr Parker.”

When they announced their engagement at tea time some days later, all three children tried to jump into Charlotte’s arms at the same time, almost making her drop the cup in her hand. Mary smiled, delighted at the happy news and stood up to gather Charlotte into her arms, offering heartfelt congratulations and assuring the girl she had already been part of the family. Tom stared at the display of joy almost absently, wondering when his brother had found the time to fall in love. He finally gathered enough wit to ask whether Lady Susan would be attending the wedding.

THE END

**Author's Note:**

> Just so you know, I’m posting this from beyond the grave. The scenes with Sidney, Charlotte and the children made my heart burst. I’m dead.


End file.
